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Anyone who is a Tim Burton fan, or has even scoured the internet for a little bit knows [or at least, has heard of] this theory: Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie, Corpse Bride, and The Nightmare Before Christmas are all one big movie. It seems to make sense, based on the above picture with each character looking like one another and each having a [dead] dog. However, after being asked by a friend to tackle this theory [especially since I’m a fairly large Tim Burton fan] and after over thinking these films – which I’ve watched over a dozen times each – I’m fairly confident in saying that these films are not connected in any way; and I’m prepared to explain why. So sit back, grab a snack and a drink; because this is going be one hell of a long post. okay. ~deep breath

Let’s start with Frankenweenie, the supposed beginning of this “timeline”. Our story begins with Victor Frankenstein of New Holland, who comes off as a young and budding scientist and film maker with his best [and seemingly only] friend: Sparky – his dog. After a freak accident, [involving a simple game of “catch” with his dog] young Victor is friendless and alone.. or so he thinks! After learning about electric currents in his science class, and how electricity can shoot through the body, making body parts move. A typical Frankenstein scenario plays out with Sparky coming back to life, then dying..again.. and then Victor accepting that his friend is gone for good.

Flash forward to Corpse Bride, arguably my favorite of the three films we’re discussing today and the “middle” of the theory’s timeline. The movie follows Victor Van Dort of Victorian England, who is set to marry a woman he’s never met. While thisVictor looks like a grown up version of Frankenweenie’s Victor, there is no correlation, let alone a mention claiming that they are even related. Not only are Van Dort’s parents completely different than Frankenstein’s, the time lapse is completely wrong as well – New Holland is found in North Lincolnshire, England. Like in the town in Frankenweenie, it’s a really small village. To prove this, its population at one point was only 955 people! The period of Victorian England on the other hand, started in 1837, making these two films impossible to be under the same timeline. Also, It’s important to note that although they both had [dead] dogs, Sparky and Scraps have two separate names. Though, that last one is a smaller, less important detail.

Lastly, we have The Nightmare Before Christmas, or the ‘end’ of the theory’s timeline – This film follows Jack, the Pumpkin King playing an almost ‘reverse Grinch’ where, instead of hating Christmas, actually falls in love with the idea and tries to have his own Halloween-ed version of it, with his [dead] dog Zero helping out. Now right off the bat, things have proven themselves that Jack [and Zero], Victor F [and Sparky] and Victor V[and Scraps] are completely different people/dogs, specifically – their names and appearances. Through-out Nightmare, we also learn that Jack is, and has been, the Pumpkin King for a very long time – long enough that even a hint at his ‘human life’ [assuming he had one] was never mentioned in film. As far as viewers are aware, Jack has always been a living skeleton. Also, going back to names, what would be the reasoning for Victor to change his name to Jack? [and Sparky to Scraps to Zero? these are important questions]

In closing, I feel that this theory doesn’t make much sense, with each character not entirely matching up to the character they supposedly become. While I wish it could be true, the facts against it are too strong.. How do you feel about this theory? Could Jack Skellington actually be Victor Frankenstein? Or does the whole theory feel too farfetched? Let me know in a comment or two down below! Also, if you found yourself to enjoy this piece of writing, please take a minute and follow me over on Facebook where you can click the “like” button on my Facebook page. By clicking “like”, you’ll see every post from warrenisweird the very moment it’s been posted. I also share links and pictures that will not be featured here on the blog. Every “like” helps a ton, so be sure to tell the horror enthusiast in your life to do the same, and share the page with family and friends!